Hello and welcome to the Discourse. ‘The Treatment of Bibi Haldar’ is the eighth story from the short story collection ‘Interpreter of Maladies’ by Jhumpa Lahiri, published in 1999. Interpreter of Maladies was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2000. The story talks about a poor Indian woman who has been suffering from a mysterious disease since her childhood that resembles epilepsy. The story hints at female hysteria, a diagnosis of emotional imbalance in women common in the Victorian era, that would be remedied by sexually stimulating the patient. The story is based on the themes of gender roles in society and touches on the issue of discrimination against women. The author adopted a collective or plural first-person narrative style and the narration offers the point of view of the whole society of neighboring women in the village of Bibi Haldar.
Characters of ‘The Treatment of Bibi Haldar’:
Bibi Haldar is the main character of the story. She is a 29-year-old poor unmarried woman living in a village in India. Bibi suffers from an epilepsy-like illness that causes seizures. Her father tried to find a cure for her situation and consulted various doctors practicing allopathy, homeopathy, Ayurveda, and other fields of medical science however, she couldn’t be cured. After her father’s death, there was no one to take care of her but one of her cousins and his wife. She is left in the meager care of her eldest cousin and his wife. Her family does not help her look for a husband despite her desires. When Haldar's daughter becomes ill, they blame Bibi. When they move away, it is up to the village women to assume her care. Bibi withdraws from society until the women, fearing she is ill, find her mysteriously pregnant. She soon fixes up her cousin's cosmetics stall and provides for her son. Haldar is Bibi Haldar’s elder cousin. He doesn’t care much about Bibi Haldar and her illness. Even though Bibi Haldar helps his wife with homely chores and also helps him manage his business of cosmetics in the village, he considers her a burden that he is forced to suffer. He and his wife share irrational fears of Bibi's effect on their child. Haldar is driven out of business by the women who disagree with his treatment of Bibi. He abandons his cousin by leaving town without a word. Haldar’s wife is more concerned about profits than with the health of her cousin-in-law. She suspects that Bibi Haldar may cause sickness to her child and banishes Bibi from their home. ‘We’ the narrators represent all the other women in the town. Women have the authority in the narrative even if they do not in their village. In retaliation for the ‘ill’ treatment of Bibi, they withdraw their business from Haldar’s cosmetics shop, ruining him. But they only act collectively, not as individuals. The title refers to both, the ill-treatment of Bibi Haldar by her cousin and his wife, and to the "relations" prescribed to cure her condition. Anyhow, she miraculously improves after getting pregnant, which suggests that her own will to improve increases as she feels responsible for her child yet to be born. After giving birth, she confidently rebuilds the fallen business of cosmetics that her cousin left.
Summary of The Treatment of Bibi Haldar:
Bibi Haldar, an Indian woman who is 29 years old, has suffered for the greater part of her life from a mysterious, epilepsy-like ailment that no doctor or priest has been able to alleviate or cure. When her father was alive, he tried everything possible to find a cure. He consulted allopath, homeopath, and Ayurveda doctors, but nothing helped. After X-rays, medical probes, and auscultations, doctors often offered random advice but nothing could cure her. And then her father died. She still was unmarried, and alone. Bibi Haldar was forced to live in the care of a cousin, Haldar, and his wife, who run a cosmetic shop despite knowing that her cousin and his wife do not like her much. Bibi keeps the inventory of her brother's cosmetics stall and is watched over by the women of their community. She is provided only meals, a room, and a length of cotton to replenish her wardrobe each year. Bibi sweeps the store, wondering loudly why she was cursed to this fate, to be alone and jealous of the wives and mothers around her. She often would complain about the mistreatment she got from her cousin’s wife. The women were sympathetic to her and would often go to Haldar’s cosmetic shop with the intent to help Bibi. One day, Bibi suffers a terribly violent fit. The women of the neighborhood insist Haldar take Bibi to get some medical care. Finally, he takes her to a polyclinic run by a palmist. The palmist prescribes marriage as a cure, “Relations will calm her blood,” he says.
The idea excites Bibi who begins dreaming of her marriage. The village women too look for a suitable match. However, Bibi’s cousin and his wife are indifferent. Her cousin feels she is unfit for marriage, while his wife believes that Bibi is cursed by the devil. Her cousin also feels that Bibi at his house offers enough help and because of sympathy, women gather around his shop, increasing his sales. Thus, he is uninterested in trying to get Bibi married. The village women meet Haldar’s wife and ask why they are reluctant to marry Bibi off to someone suitable. Haldar’s wife says that she is already 29 years old, too old to get a good match. Furthermore, she has no skills to be a good wife. Her studies ceased prematurely, she is not allowed to watch TV, she doesn’t know cooking, sewing, or how to please a man. Bibi Haldar insists on her marriage and demands to be photographed for potential in-laws, but Haldar refuses; Bibi retaliates by shrugging off her work in favor of telling stories about Haldar and his wife. Haldar relents and places an ad: “GIRL, UNSTABLE, HEIGHT 152 CENTIMETERS, SEEKS HUSBAND.”
Nobody notices the ad. However, the women of the village keep trying to teach Bibi about her wifely duties. Haldar doesn’t like it much but he cannot stop women from visiting his shop and meeting Bibi.
That November, Haldar's wife is pregnant, and she becomes suspicious that if Bibi remains close to her, her would-be child may also get affected by her curse or illness. Bibi is forced to keep away from her for fear of infecting the child. Her plates are not washed with the others, and she is given separate towels and soap.
One day, Bibi suffers another fit near the bank of the pond and falls there. The men on the bank lift her up, take her to her home, and give her a sedative medicine. When they reach her home, her cousin and his wife refuse to let her in. Bibi is then forced to sleep in the store room. Haldar’s wife suffers a difficult delivery of the child and gives birth to a daughter. She insists that Bibi should not be allowed in the house. Bibi’s cousin though let her in the basement. Bibi suffers more loneliness and unchecked fits. When the women of the village notice her bad situation, they express their concerns to her cousin. However, Haldar ignores their pleas and as a result, the women decide to stop buying anything from his shop. Haldar suffers losses but is not ready to mend his ways and treat Bibi well. In autumn, Haldar's daughter becomes ill and his wife cruelly blames Bibi. She is forced to go back to the storeroom. Bibi suffers from disappointment, depression, and her regular fits. She stops socializing—and stops searching for a husband as if she is retiring from life. The women of the village notice all this and totally discard buying anything from Haldar’s shop. By the end of the year, Haldar suffers unbearable losses and decides to pack his bags and move away with his family, leaving no trace of him, while leaving Bibi alone in the storeroom. Anyhow, the women of the village come to know about her and they decide to inform another known relative of Bibi but he too doesn’t respond. The women spruce up the storeroom and send their children to play on the roof of her storeroom to alert others in the event of an attack. At night, however, Bibi is left alone. She avoids talking to other women and never leaves the roof of the storeroom.
In spring, women notice that Bibi is vomiting and soon they find out that she is pregnant. They try to ascertain who is the father. They ask if Bibi was forced or raped but she says that she can’t remember what happened. The women visit the storeroom to inspect and find that everything is tidy and nothing has been disturbed, thus, there is no evidence of rape. They decide to teach Bibi how to take care of herself during pregnancy. Soon she gives birth to a son and the women notice that Bibi is full of confidence. She not only skillfully takes care of her newly born son, but also manages to take Haldar’s old creams and wares out of the storeroom and reopen his shop. The women willfully help her and spread the word of mouth about her shop and soon the stall is providing enough money for Bibi to raise her son. The women keep trying to pry upon her and ask her about the father of her son but she never discusses that. However, the women notice that now Bibi seems to be fully cured. They wonder if the ‘relationship’ with the unknown man and her son cured her, or was she cured by the sense of responsibility and freedom from the demeaning and humiliating environment she suffered under her cousin and his wife.
So this is it for today. We will continue to discuss the history of Indian English literature. Please stay connected with the Discourse. Thanks and Regards!
No comments:
Post a Comment